Comedian-actor Raju Srivastava breathed his last on September 21 at the age of 58. He passed away in AIIMS Delhi, where he was admitted after suffering a heart attack while working out at a gym on August 10. His last rites took place at Kashmere Gate's Nigambodh Ghat in New Delhi on the following day. Now, Raju Srivastava's prayer meet will be held in Mumbai on Sunday (September 25) at ISCKON temple, Juhu. Reportedly, his wife is expected to fly to Mumbai on Saturday.
According to his family members, the prayer meeting is scheduled from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm.
Raju Srivastava's prayer meet
Raju Srivastava passed away
After his battle in the ICU for over 40 days at AIIMS, the popular comedian passed away on September 21. Raju Srivastava suffered a heart attack on August 10 and was rushed to the hospital, where he underwent angioplasty. Since then, he was on a ventilator and never gained consciousness. He was declared dead at 10:20 am on September 21, according to hospital sources. His mortal remains were taken to Nigambodh Ghat crematorium for last rites. ALSO READ: Raju Srivastava cremated in Delhi; Sunil Pal, Ahsaan Qureshi & others attend last rites
On September 22, an ambulance decked up with white flowers left for the Nigambodh Ghat crematorium at Kashmere Gate around 9 am for the funeral, which also had veteran poet-humorists Surendra Sharma and Ashok Chakradhar in attendance. Srivastava's son Ayushmaan performed the last rites as per Hindu rituals.
Industry colleagues Sunil Pal and Ahsaan Qureshi, director Madhur Bhandarkar and singer Ram Shankar along with hundreds of fans also reached the venue to pay last respects to the comedian.
About Raju Srivastava
Born in 1963 in Kanpur to Ramesh Srivastava, a government employee and a humour poet, and homemaker mother Saraswati, Srivastava was first noticed for his resemblance to megastar Amitabh Bachchan and later became popular for his observational stand-up sketches in and around his hometown. ALSO READ: Tanmay Bhat, Gaurav Gupta, Harsh Gujral & more new-age comedians pay tributes to Raju Srivastava
The comic, whose career spanned almost four decades, played nameless bit parts in hit Hindi films such as "Maine Pyaar Kiya" and "Baazigar" before gaining nationwide fame as a participant in the 2005 reality comedy competition show "The Great Indian Laughter Challenge".
Srivastava is also survived by wife Shikha and daughter Antara. ALSO READ: EXPLAINED: What is virtual autopsy? Novel technique used to perform Raju Srivastava's postmortem
